Cardinal
by tortoislume
Summary: My final story for Jerza Week that came out aeons late. Jellal's about to start out at Fiore's school for magic, and is eager to meet the legendary Titania, but encounters some confused feelings when he meets a certain redhead. Rated T, but has some sexy bits so I may raise the rating at some point.


_**A/N: Hey all, here's my final instalment**_ _ **for Jerza week (that took a million years longer than I'd anticipated, but oh well, Jerza is eternal :p) From here on out I'm going to be focusing my efforts on Fate?, so fans of that fic just wait! Thanks:D**_

 _ **Also, I drew a little picture to go with a certain scene from this. Use this link to check it out if you like ;)**_

 ** _tortoislume-thegreat. tumblr post/125158211774/ cardinal-a-fairy-tail-fanfic-fanfiction_**

 ** _All characters belong to Hiro Mashima_**

* * *

Jellal awoke that morning to the sound of cardinals singing in the trees - a sign that winter had given way to spring. Today was his first day attending Fiore's School of Magic. Though he was entering part way through the term due to having just woken up from a curse, he was eager to put the past behind him and get involved in the community of mages he'd heard so much about. He didn't remember much from his time being possessed - apparently all the victims of Ultear the Black Witch's curses were experiencing those side effects. The last clear memory he had was from when he was ten years old and stayed up absurdly late each night to watch the stars and chart down as many heavenly celestial bodies as he could. He'd looked up the best way to make use of his interest, and learned about the school for mages; he wanted to practice Heavenly Body magic.

During his mental and physical recovery in the hospital, he'd read all he could about the school; pamphlets, newspaper and magazine articles, even historical annals about the institution. The more he'd read, the more determined he became about honing his prowess as a mage. From his studies, he learned that the school was located right next to the church of Zentopia, which was in the midst of electing a new Archbishop. He'd made sure to study the situation eagerly. Apparently the previous one had been manipulated by one of his most trusted Cardinals, Lapointe. As such, when relieved from his manipulation, the Archbishop had decreed that he was no longer fit to run their faith, hence the current elections. Many candidates were running for the position, though Jellal didn't know who he was rooting for. Besides, religious politics weren't what had sparked his interest in the story anyway. It was the interference of a certain group that had. A group of mages - a club if you will - that was made at the School of Magic: Fairy Tail. They had taken down Lapointe and saved the faith from complete corruption. These people seemed to be the most rambunctious and powerful wizards of the lot, having starred in most of the features Jellal had read about the school. Particularly, there was one character he had read about that kindled his enthusiasm: _Titania_. Though Jellal had never seen a photo of her, he knew from reading her interviews and about her feats that he was in love. _She's just the coolest girl I've ever heard of. I bet she's amazing._ He'd be lying if he said that his desire to attend the school had nothing to do with her being there. _Maybe some day, I'll win her heart._ Jellal was well aware that he was an exceptionally good looking guy. Surely Titania had many men fawning over her because of her prowess, but it was statistically unlikely that any were quite as handsome as him. At least that's what he told himself, looking in the mirror as he got ready.

He had cerulean blue hair and a red birthmark on the right side of his face in an intricate pattern that he decided gave him some cool edginess. Despite not having any memory of how he became so, he was anomalously well muscled beneath his clothing. _Hope it appeals to Titania._ He donned his clothing and ate breakfast before leaving the house.

Arriving at school, he listened to the church bells as they chimed 8 AM. Classes didn't start until 8:30, so he went to the library to look up some more information about Heavenly Body Magic. He found the right section and looked around for a book that looked like it would have information on space magic. Just as he was reaching for _Principles of Celestial and Heavenly Body Magic_ , another hand grazed against his as he tried to grab it. He looked over and saw the most beautiful girl he had ever laid eyes on. She had long, scarlet hair, a heart shaped face, big, cute brown eyes, and a certain sultriness in her lips. He felt heat rising in his cheeks uncontrollably, and his stomach began doing somersaults. She was wearing a tight black turtleneck dress that cut off mid-thigh and showed off her form...and what a form it was. Her body had a dramatic hourglass curvature, with big breasts, ass and thighs and a tiny waist. _I don't think I've ever seen someone quite_ _ **this**_ _attractive._

She jumped a little and blushed at their hands colliding. "My apologies. Did you need this book? I was grabbing it for a friend, but I can wait until you're done with it." She asked, tossing a lock of cardinal hair behind her shoulder. Jellal's brain seemed to have turned to jelly. _She...she's so good looking. I didn't think I could be so attracted to someone so instantly…_ his mind trailed off, unsure of how to speak anymore. _Snap out of it Jellal! There are plenty of pretty girls out there! You are saving yourself for Titania because she is the coolest of all girls ever._ Jellal shook his head and told her "That won't be necessary - I was just looking to do some light reading before class starts. You can bring that to your friend." The beauty flashed him a smile that may have stopped his heart. _Quit it Jellal._

"So are you also a Celestial Spirit mage?" She asked. "Me? Oh no, I was looking to read up on the Heavenly Body magic stuff." He replied. "Really? Then I'm surprised that you didn't go to the Church's archives. Zentopia has a very in-depth collection of astronomical research, which is the basis of Heavenly Body magic. I'm impressed though, I hear it can be really difficult to master - it's the caster version of Celestial magic isn't it? To be able to embody entire astronomical bodies is quite a feat." Jellal tried to ignore the swell in his chest from the flattery. _Quit it Jellal, act like you would if she were just another guy._ "I'll be sure to check it out then - I'm new, so I haven't learned the ropes quite yet." She smiled at his words. "Oh, so you're new? No wonder I haven't seen you before. Since it is your first time around the campus, I could take you to the church after class - you're going to need to get well acquainted with the place if you plan on studying Heavenly Body magic."

Jellal stood dumbfounded, unsure of how to address this quandary. On one hand, he was blushing harder than he knew was possible. This redhead before him somehow managed to light a spark in his mind and heart (and lower areas) that he really hadn't experienced before (well, at least since he awoke from his curse as far as he knew). On the other, he didn't want to be the kind of guy that just listened to his penis when making decisions. He'd decided months ago that Titania was the one for him, and spending more time than was absolutely necessary with this girl would simply work to distract him from his true romantic pursuit. Finally, he really did need to find this place if it had the kind of archives she had described about Heavenly Body magic. He knew he took more time than was socially acceptable to decide, but the redhead stood patiently awaiting his answer.

"Sure, that would be really kind of you. I could use the help." He finally found himself saying. _I'll just have to ignore all my visceral urges, and make sure that all my interactions with this girl remain completely platonic._ She smiled at him and the pair started as the warning bell rang. "Well, looks like we've got to get to class." She said. "Do you need help finding yours?" Jellal smiled meekly. "Yeah, yeah I do. I'm afraid I have no idea how to get around here." "Well then," she grinned at him. "what class do you have first?" Jellal ruffled through his bag for his schedule. "Uhh….here it is - it's Linguistics with Ms. Belno". The girl jumped a little. "Hey! That's what I have too. I'll walk with you then." Jellal nodded and followed her out of the library.

They made their way to the ordained lecture hall, Jellal looking in awe at the vast room and its intricate wood carvings that decorated the furniture. The walls were filled with all kinds of texts from different languages, including some that looked like they could be from another continent. Erza raised an eyebrow at him. "Ostentatious, isn't it?" Jellal took a seat next to her. "You could say that." Truthfully, he had no idea what ostentatious meant, but it was a word that sounded like it described this room.

A blond woman who looked to be in her sixties walked to the front of the room and introduced herself as Ms. Belno. Despite the countless languages that littered the walls, they were apparently only concentrating on Fiore's native language. "For thousands of years now, the most prominent language in Fiore has been English. Now, you may be wondering, where did the word English come from? It's unlike any area or name around this continent. I'm afraid the origins of this word are unknown; it's just something we Fiorians take as is. Now, English is a very fluctuant language. It is in a constant liquid state. Though the language frequently changes, we can identify certain consistencies within the it. These can be dissected into lexical categories, and by understanding the role and function of each lexical label, we can better understand why this language acts as it does, and identify how to tell what is correct or incorrect, without a strict, prescriptivist lense." As Belno began her lecture, Jellal began to zone out. He found himself sneaking glances at the girl beside him. _Stop it Jellal! You must stay true to Titania!_ He reprimanded himself. He took instead to doodling the Heavenly Market enclosure constellation in his workbook.

He looked at his watch and saw that an hour had passed already. There were only twenty minutes left to the class. _Was I really zoned out that long?_ He heard the professor ask what the different ways of parsing numbers were, and the redhead's hand shot up. "Yes, ?" The teacher addressed her. _Scarlet huh? How appropriate._ He thought, eyeing her hair. "Cardinal and Ordinal. They are generally considered determiners. A cardinal number is just a plain number; one, eight, twenty, etcetera, while an ordinal number describes placements, such as first, next, or last." She answered. "Very good Ms. Scarlet." The teacher complimented her. _She's so smart. She seems to know a lot about everything._

The class concluded after a few minutes more, giving way to a 45 minute break. The Scarlet girl looked at him once Ms. Belno officially stated that class was over. Jellal felt his heart flutter again at her gaze. _I really am screwed._

"So, ready to check out those Zentopian archives?" She asked him. "Sure am." He replied. The two made their way out of the class, through the enormous halls, and outside. The sun was shining brightly, causing both to squint. They made their way over to the huge cathedral, Jellal letting his mouth hang open while regarding the extravagant designs of the building's architecture and stained glass windows. Stars upon stars and other celestial bodies seemed to decorate the entire place. He could even name quite a few of them himself from all the reading he'd done on the subject. When they entered the church, Scarlet signaled for him to keep quiet. "All the cardinals are meeting to decide on a new Archbishop. It's all they've been doing these past few weeks and they get angry if anything breaks their concentration."

Jellal nodded his understanding. The two crept past the rooms that were in use quietly. Scarlet led him to a humongous library, overflowing with giant tomes on shelf after shelf of bookcases. Jellal looked in awe. "This is the church's astronomy section." Stated Scarlet. Jellal's mouth hung agape. "All...all this is astronomy?" Scarlet smiled at him. "Yep!"

Jellal ran forward like a child in a candy store. He picked up a manuscript about the movement of the star Altair within the Aquila constellation over the past three decades and began skimming through it. _There's so much I must learn! I need to make up for all the time I lost._

Scarlet let out a small giggle beside him. "You sure don't waste any time. I'm surprised you didn't know about this place if you're studying Heavenly Body magic." Jellal looked up at her. "Well, I am a novice at it, I admit." Scarlet looked surprised. "Is it just a new interest of yours then?" She asked. "Not exactly...I've always been very passionate about astronomy...but…" _Should I really tell her what happened to me?_ "I only just woke up a couple months ago from the possession of a very powerful mage. I'm afraid that all the memories I have prior are from when I was ten - so I've got to make up for lost time, you know?" Scarlet looked very shocked by his confession. _Maybe it was too forward of me to say all that? It seems like something you might tell a lover or dear friend...not a near-stranger. I need to try harder to stay as platonic as possible._ The redhead slowly closed her mouth that was hanging open from shock, giving him a small smile. "So have you tried out any spells yet?" She asked him. "I have. As for now, I have accomplished the ability to release star-fused explosive bursts. It's relatively easy when you concentrate on the connection of energy between the star you have in mind and where you want to propel that energy. Lately I've been concentrating on a more dangerous spell, Meteor. It imbues my body with the speed and force of a crashing meteorite. I can kind of do it, though I still need practice - I keep burning up my clothes in the process!" He replied, pleased that Scarlet hadn't been weirded out by his sharing.

He spent the next ten minutes rifling through tome after tome, all bound in leather, and most hand-written with intricate diagrams of the night sky and the patterns stars moved in over time. "Am I able to check these out - to bring them home do you think?" He asked the scarlet girl. "I don't see why you couldn't. These seem precious, but it's doubtful that any of them can't be replicated with cloning magic. I'm sure the archivist knows some so that those outside the church can learn from this library."

Jellal nodded and grabbed a couple volumes that looked interesting as the two of them approached the front. "Excuse me" Scarlet asked the man upfront stocking books. "Would my friend here be able to take out some of these books? He's learning Heavenly Body magic and would like to study them as a reference." The man snorted, barely glancing at her. "Well good luck to him. It's doubtful he'll make much headway even with these materials, but he's welcome to try I suppose. You should tell him to choose an easier magic to stu-" Right when the man looked up at the two of them and laid eyes on Jellal's face, he stopped mid-word. There was a long, awkward pause. "I'm sorry, the archive is closing now. Please get back to school." The man began shooing them away, muttering hysterically under his breath. "Uhm, sorry sir? Why are you telling us to leave? Surely you don't close _this_ early in the day?" Scarlet tried to plead with him, but the man ignored her, shoving them out as quickly as he could.

The two of them soon found themselves on the front steps of the massive church, both frowning in confusion of what had just happened. Jellal saw Scarlet grit her teeth. "We should not stand for this injustice - you have as much right as the members of Zentopia to learn from those books!" Jellal was still too shocked by the man's reaction to him to know what to make of it. Scarlet continued. "I'd bet it has something to do with us being students of magic - the church has been acting wary of us ever since that Lapointe incident. How rude of them to just throw us out like that." She was evidently seething at the idea of them being discriminated against, and Jellal decided it was wise not to interrupt her. _She seems kind of scary like this...but in a good, really hot way…_

Jellal checked his watch and saw that their break was nearly over. "We should get back to school I guess" He suggested. Scarlet nodded and they began to trek back together. "I think we should do whatever it takes to get you those materials." She stated matter-of-factly. "You really don't have to inconvenience yourself for my sake" Said Jellal, unable to hide that he was flattered. "Nonsense! Your's is the pursuit of knowledge and magic. Your desire to learn should not be quashed by anything - especially oppressive authorities that wish to horde that knowledge for themselves!"

Jellal wasn't sure whether or not he took being turned down by the church that seriously, but Scarlet's vehement determination to support his learning made his insides bubble. He smiled. "Well, I don't see what we could even do about it. It's Zentopia's property and they have the right to share it with only those they deem fit. We get no say."

Scarlet raised an eyebrow at him. "Come now, you're a mage, aren't you? Our kind do have an affinity for...breaking rules." She quirked her lips in a mischievous smile and winked at him. Jellal felt himself blush. "A-and what do you mean by that?" He asked. Scarlet stopped for a moment to ponder something. "Meet me in the garden courtyard at five today. I have a club meeting after school, but I'm free after. Besides, the later we are, the better. I have a plan." "Huh? What's the plan?" Jellal asked her. "I'll tell you later, when I've had time to properly formulate it. For now, we need to get to our classes." Jellal glanced down at his watch and realized she was right.

Scarlet walked him to his next class, Anthropology, and then left for her own. The day toiled on wearily, lecture after lecture. Jellal felt useless at concentrating in the midst of such a large crowd. _I'd much rather be reading this material alone at home._

And so the day went by until it was four and all his classes were finished. He then headed to the library to do some quiet reading before heading to the meeting place for Scarlet.

 _No sign of Titania so far...I was banking on the students and teachers bowing in her presence or something to tell who she was, but it doesn't look like it's going to be that easy. I wonder what the best method of introducing myself should be...I should hurry and find her so I can quit feeling so drawn to Scarlet._ He propped open a book against his thigh and began sifting through the pages on the Cardinal directions and their symbols. He found a page on the constellations and began to read. _**The four cardinal directions are North, East, South and West. Each is represented by a legendary creature; For the North there is the Black Turtle, for the East is the Azure Dragon, for the South is the Vermillion Bird, and for the West is the White Tiger. Each has its own constellation in the night sky, and are often used by travellers to navigate when lacking a compass at night...**_

 _It's strange...as I read this stuff, it almost feels like I already know it. I suppose it could be something that I knew about during my mental enslavement. Am I regaining my memories?_ As he pondered, he glanced at his watch, realizing it was almost time to meet Scarlet. He began to pack his bag and headed out the library. Walking outside, he considered the idea that maybe Titania wouldn't want to be with him. _Maybe she will have someone else she's interested in. In that case...maybe I'll ask Scarlet out? She seems to at least like spending time with me...or is it that she's just friendly?_ He mulled it over as he headed towards the courtyard. _No. Your resolve is to make Titania yours. Don't forget how admirable and cool she is. Don't get distracted by a pretty face and try to justify your urges after the fact. If there's someone else, you'll just have to win her heart over them._

Jellal didn't have to wait long for Scarlet to arrive. She seemed to be in high spirits, her cardinal hair swishing as she jogged up to him. "You came! I'm glad; I was worried that you might just leave with how vague I was." She smiled. Jellal stared at her smile for a few moments before remembering it was polite to return it. "It's alright, though I have been wondering what you're thinking of doing. Ready to fill me in?" She gave him a cheeky grin."We're going to break into Zentopia. I went over some cloning magic between my classes - it doesn't look too tough. I assure you that I will do all I can to make sure that your scholarly pursuits are fulfilled" She was no longer looking at him, instead gazing into the distance with stars in her eyes and one hand in what looked to be a first of victory.

Jellal was taken aback to say the least. "Break...in? Just you and me?" Scarlet looked at him with her eyebrows raised. "Of course. Though I will respect your boundaries if this is beyond your comfort zone. If that's the case, please forgive my pushiness. I hate to have wasted your time." He wasn't quite sure how to react. _She's so brave, yet so reasonable and considerate._ He smiled. _She kind of reminds me of the personality I imagined Titania having._ "I'm in. What's life without a little adventure?". _I really need those archives if I'm going to be serious enough about magic to be on par with Titania. I'm so glad Scarlet decided to befriend me. Once I get over my attraction to her, I'm sure we'll be great friends._

The two set out towards the church again. The sky was now beginning to darken, the sun steadily sinking lower into the west. "So what's your plan?" Jellal asked Scarlet. She looked straight at him "We're gonna need to be as stealthy and quick as possible. I have a way of breaking in, but I can't guarantee us time. I know that they lock up the archives around five to start their worship, which usually lasts about an hour. After that is over they are unlikely to check up on the books again, but it's not impossible - I'm afraid I'm not sure. That's why it's best for us to be hasty."

Jellal smiled. _Doing this feels so exhilarating. Is this what it's like breaking rules with friends? If so, I'm a fan._ Scarlet began to jog briskly in front of him, and he couldn't help but let his eyes travel downwards as she did so, watching as her ass jiggled. _Quit it Jellal_ he thought, though his eyes didn't listen to his brain.

They soon reached the church, Scarlet leading him to the side and behind the structure. "There's a door here somewhere that leads directly to the archives...Ah! Here we go!" She ran towards a wooden door at the back of the church, which looked very plain compared to the rest of the building. She squatted down, presenting Jellal with an even better view of her ass than he'd had before. He could see the bottom of her lacy, deep purple underwear. He gulped, telling himself for the upteenth time to look away. He then noticed that she had retrieved what looked to be a small knife, maybe a lock-pick, seemingly from thin air. _I must have not noticed, distracted as I was by my perversion._ It didn't take her long to undo the lock - apparently she had some skill at this - and open the door quietly. The pair crept inside, keeping to the balls of their feet.

"Now… pick out what you need - quickly" She whispered at him. He didn't need to be told twice. He shuffled around, picking out the books he had found earlier and a few extra that looked promising, and brought them over to Scarlet. "Here. I think these should be good" he told her. She picked one up and felt it over, finally taking it between her palms and mumbling "Duplicate". Instantly, another exact copy of the book appeared between her hands. She set the original down and picked up the next book. "Wow - I've never seen cloning magic in action before - I bet it can come in real handy." he commented. She smiled at him. "I could always teach you sometime if you wanted... Maybe we could go out on a date or something." She didn't phrase it as a question, more like a casual comment, but she was now giving him a slightly sultry stare.

Jellal gulped and felt himself go red. _How on Earthland am I supposed to react to this?_ His eyes unwittingly traveled down her body of their own accord. _She's so hot...and I really like talking to her._ His brain began fantasizing about going out with her, holding her hand, making out, and finally doing the dirty, all within a matter of seconds. _But...I already decided that I'd pursue Titania…_ Jellal looked at Scarlet's face and gulped again. _She's the most attractive girl I've ever laid eyes on...but I really must keep my resolve. Who would I be if I gave up on my dream after just a few hours with an attractive girl? I need to work to be worthy of Titania._ Jellal took a deep breath. He felt physical pain in his heart at the thought of what he was about to say. "I-I'm so sorry - you're really beautiful, and kind - but...I'm afraid that I have my heart set on someone else." He told her, unable to look into her eyes. When he finally forced himself to, he felt like taking back every word he'd just said. Though her overall expression hadn't changed much, there was a sadness in her eyes that almost made his heart stop. _She's the kind of person that hides her feelings when she thinks they might inconvenience people...I know. I'm like that too._ Such a beautiful face marred by disappointment like that was a true tragedy. "I'm sorry, I - I should have guessed that you would alread-" "No! No, it's my fault. All my fault. I'm sorry." He was blushing immensely. Scarlet began duplicating the books again while Jellal stood there feeling like the world's biggest idiot. _I can't believe I just turned her down! I really must be a crazy person. I haven't even met Titania yet and I shut down possibly the most beautiful girl on the planet._ He thought while looking her over again.

Just then, they heard footsteps nearby. Both froze, looking at each other tensely. Next came voices. "I told you, we just need to make sure those damned fairies aren't up to anything. I told you one was spotted with that criminal, didn't I?" The voice drew nearer and Jellal and Scarlet bolted for it, grabbing the cloned copies and leaving the original books misplaced on the table. They were out the wooden door before they heard the door to the library whip open. _They must have heard us leaving - that door creaks so loudly._

The pair sprinted as hard as they could, trying not to get caught. Only a couple meters on however they heard yelling from behind. "Hey! Stop and give those back!" Jellal glanced backwards and saw that they were being pursued by three clergymen, one of whom had a magic broom. The pair ran even faster. _We're not going to get away at this rate if he flies. I only have one option._ Without overthinking it, Jellal ran forward and grabbed Scarlet around the waist, facing her towards him. "Meteor!" He cried, concentrating with all his might on the astral entity. The pair were sealed in a blinding yellow light, bursting from the ground to the air, zooming across the landscape at the speed of a falling meteor.

Jellal looked up ahead of him, trying to think of how to get safely away from their chasers without taking them too far away to walk back to town. _Unfortunately the meteor spell is easy to see...they'll probably find us if we're too nearby._ He searched around desperately for somewhere appropriate to land, but everything was whizzing by so fast it was difficult to comprehend anything about the ground.

 _That's strange, I feel like something is missing...why do I feel this way? I'm still holding on to Scarlet, and she had the books last I checked._ He glanced down and realized far too late what was missing. _I forgot about my little problem with meteor…_

It seemed that his spell had completely incinerated his clothing within seconds. But that wasn't the worst part: it had done the same to Scarlet's clothing, leaving them both completely naked and tightly pressed together. He felt heat rise in his cheeks. Jellal tried to stop himself, but couldn't help glancing down at how their chests connected. _Her breasts are pushing against me...I can feel everything._ Jellal forced his eyes to stop staring at the girl whose body was touching him, but now that he knew their position, it was all he could think about. Trying his hardest to not get hard, he realized too late that he had lost concentration on the spell, and the two were plummeting downwards fast.

Unable to reignite his meteor, Jellal braced himself for landing, making sure that he went underneath. The pair hit the ground and bounced in a jumble of limbs, holding one another tightly to avoid hitting the other too much. When they finally stopped, Jellal kept his eyes shut for a time, knowing that if he opened them, the stimulation of what awaited might be too much. Slowly, he allowed his lids to rise and looked around him. They appeared to have landed in a grassy field. _Thank goodness. Anywhere else would have been especially painful, and I'm bruised up enough as is._

Knowing that he'd have to do it sooner or later, he looked at the very naked girl lying on top of him. They still had their limbs wrapped around one another tightly, and Jellal found he had forgotten all about their circumstance and whereabouts, unable to comprehend anything beyond _HER BOOBS ARE TOUCHING ME._ It didn't take much to forget all about his injuries either as he felt his blood rush away from them and towards his groin. Feeling himself get aroused, he quickly flipped them over, so that she was underneath. They made eye contact for a few seconds that made his heart race before Jellal forced himself to get off her and turn away, doing all he could to obscure his engorged genitals.

"I'm - I'm SO SO sorry for that" He told Scarlet, blushing. "I just thought we needed to get away fast and then didn't think about the downside of meteor. I-I promise that I didn't plan this or anything Scarlet!" He felt himself blush uncontrollably. "Scarlet?" She laughed. "There's no need to be sorry, I understand. And you can call me Erza, Scarlet is actually my last name."

 _Erza...Why does that sound so familiar?_ He wondered,searching his memory. "...Erza…" He glanced behind him, forgetting why he'd turned away in the first place, the sight of her making him blush again. She was sitting so that her lower...bits were covered by her long, toned legs and used one arm to shield her nipples from him. Jellal felt himself perk up some more despite himself. After what was definitely far too long, Jellal remembered himself and turned away again. _Right, I was trying to remember where I've heard the name Erza before. Wasn't it...didn't one of those Fairy Tail articles refer to Titania once as "Titania Erza"? Maybe it's a coincidence._

"I - I am so sorry about our clothes...I really don't know what we can do now…" "Not to worry." He heard Erza get up behind him and turned even redder, fighting every urge to turn around and look at her. "It just so happens that my magic suits this occasion perfectly." _I wonder what that means…_ Jellal wondered, turning to face her just in time to see her light up, her naked form obscured by light. A moment later the light faded, leaving Erza dressed in a new outfit, white and blue shirt with a navy pleated skirt. Jellal's jaw dropped. _She's a requip mage? But that's the same magic that Titania uses! Could it be…?_

Before Jellal could process his theory, they heard voices and footsteps running towards them. _Zentopia!_ Jellal panicked. "TIIIITTTAAAANNNNIIIIAAAAA!" One of them came yelling towards them. _He's definitely looking at Erza when he says that...does this mean...that maybe she's the one I've been looking for all along? Oh dear...I am definitely the world's biggest imbecile._

The clergymen approached them, and both Erza and Jellal (still completely nude) took their stances. They slowed down a couple meters in front of the pair. "Relax you two. We have figured out our misunderstanding and have come to apologize for our staff's behaviour. It seems that the man working in the library today did not hear about Mr. Fernandes' depossession. We are truly sorry."

Jellal was shocked. "How...how do you know about that?" he asked. "Oh - right. I forgot that the magic council wiped your memories. Less resources for them to spend on PTSD I suppose." He mumbled darkly. "Anyway. Long story short is that you spent quite some time while under Ultear the Black Witch's influence in our archives. We trusted you, and ended up regretting it when hearing about how you infiltrated the Magic Council." Jellal just stood, wide-eyed and shocked, before shaking his head in frustration. _I can't remember anything. Learning about what I did when possessed is so scary._

"Anyway, I've said too much already. I just wanted to come apologize so that Titania here doesn't hold a grudge. I know all too well how fatal it would be to get on her bad side." He chuckled, nodding at Erza. "Anyway, I should get heading back now. You two seem...busy" He commented, looking at Jellal's state of undress. Jellal felt himself go red again.

Erza turned to him as the Zentopian clergy walked away. She eyed him up and down shamelessly and he felt himself blush some more, unsure of whether to feel turned on or embarrassed by her gaze. _So this is her, the absolute girl of my dreams. The woman I've grown to love from afar, but couldn't notice right in front of me. I must be truly thick headed._

"About what you said earlier...about having feelings for someone else…" Jellal cringed in shame, wishing more than anything he could take it all back. Erza pursed her lips and took her chin between her forefinger and thumb. "...I'm sorry, but I am afraid that will simply not do. I will fight and win your heart from whoever this rival of mine is. I assure you, I will take very good care of you no matter what." Jellal felt his heart hammering in his chest. _This is too good to be true. Is this how girls feel when they're being wooed?_ He didn't have time to linger on the thought. The next second Erza was less than a foot away from him, his back against a rock and her left hand pressed next to his head. _She so close...and I'm still naked…_ he gulped. She looked him in the eyes and said "I will eclipse your prior love interest in your heart. After seeing you like this…" She gave him another once-over "I'm afraid that leaving you be is not an option."

Jellal's stomach flip-flopped. "Erza…" He told her, smiling softly. "You've already won my heart. The person I've had feelings for was just a fictional character - the Titania I'd read about. To have you here in front of me is a blessing. I am so very glad that we met." The two shared a grin before Erza closed the space between them and kissed him. He melted against her, grabbing her hips and pressing her against him. The two made out for what could have been an age...or three seconds. All he knew was that Erza felt perfect against him.

When the pair had finished their kissing, Jellal looked down and remembered his nakedness. "Uhm...Sorry Erza, but I don't suppose you have any men's clothing in your requip space?" He asked. She smirked a little in response. "No. I don't. I suppose I'll just have to lend you the closest thing I have" Jellal gulped. "I was kind of fearing that." The two laughed and Erza gave him a pair of stretchy panties and some workout shorts...neither of which fit him comfortably. He made due however, thankful that he wouldn't have to walk through town stark naked.

As they made their way back, Jellal reflected on his first day at Fiore's School of Magic. _Today has certainly been exciting. If this is the life of a mage, I guess I'll never get bored._ He looked over at Erza and smiled. _What those clergymen told me about my past...I'm still worried about finding out what I've done. But I know with Erza by my side, I can get through it. After all, she's cardinal to me._


End file.
